Dundlod Shekawati in Rajasthan,tourist spot in shekawati rajasthan & wild life, national parks and palaces in rajasthan

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Dundlod

Dundlod, a small town in the Jhunjhunu district, lies seven km towards the north of Nawalgarh and is in the heart of Shekhawati area. The family of Dundlod are the descendants of Kesari Singh, the fifth son of Sardhul Singh.

The Dundlod fort which was made in 1750 AD shows again an amalgamation of the Rajput and Mughal art and architecture, clearly seen in its motifs of flowers and foliage, minarets, mythological paintings, archaic furniture, wall hangings of arrows and shields which have mostly remained the same till today. Louis XIV century furniture, stained glass windows and good paintings can be see at The Diwan-e- Khas built as per the Mughal architectural style. The Duchatta lies above the Diwan-e-Khas, from here the ladies in, purdah, watched the court ceremonies. A part of this fort - The Dundlod Fort has now been converted into a heritage hotel. The Diwan Khana at the fort can be visited and on request you could see very old manuscripts. The Bar at this fort is very well spoken of.

The havelis in Dundlod mostly have an intricately carved wooden entrance gate that leads to a small courtyard which then leads to a larger courtyard. Every side you see in these Dundlod havelis - the facades, gateways, windows, courtyard, walls, the parapets and ceilings, you will witness either intricately carvings or embellished with murals and frescos paintings.

Marwari - A local Horse, are bred here by the Dera Dundlod Qila Royal Equestrian and Polo Centre.

Dundlod, home to the wealthy Goenka Merchant family, whose success is best evident from their richly fresco painted havelis. The Tuganram Goenka Haveli, has beautiful frescos and the fine mirror work above the windows on the upper walls of the courtyard. The Jagathia Haveli and Satyanarayan Temple built again by the Goenka family are the other major attractions of Dundlod. Another attraction in Dundlod is the beautiful Chhatri of Ram Dutt Goenka whose friesco shows Krishna dancing with his gopis. A walk through the village on a camel-back safari is recommended.

A few other places to see in Dundlod:

Badalgarh Fort - The Rajput rulers used the Risalas (Cavalry) for their battles. The Thikana of Dundlod had such a Risala with 200 horses (till as recently as 1920). This Fort must have housed these horses.

The Rajeev Goenka Academy - This not-for-profit academy stores archives of more than 2000 hours of rare renditions of around 500 artistes. The academy has a good music room for scholars and serious musicians. The academy is making provisions for digitalizing of its archives which are currently in 78-Rpm lacquer records & mp3 compact disks. On the anvil is also, setting up a museum which will have all the musical instruments.

Seth Arjun Das Goenka Haveli Museum - Built in 1875, has 20 rooms, all displaying period artifacts, like, handsome riders on horses, elephants and camels, an owner sitting with his accountant & assistants, depicted through life-size mannequins. Other things shown here are the pulley-rope-punkah (fan), rain water harvesting in the architectural design of the haveli, clothes worn by men & women in those days, special flask which kept water cool or warm in summer or winter respectively, swing for baby Krishna in the worshiping room, holy water from Ganges preserved since 1902 are all a few examples of what you can see at Seth Arjun Das Goenka haveli Museum.

Places to stay: Dera Dundlod Lodge

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